Roses Are Red
by NadiaSwift
Summary: She was a woman who would never be who she could've been. He was a man who could never be what he should've been. Meant to be, right? There's just one little fly in the ointment: she's engaged to his brother! {Kaito x Meiko x Akaito}
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

A plane glided down smoothly from the sky, touching down effortlessly onto the tarmac. It had just made the long journey from a small country in Europe with almost no stops in between. The passengers were all hungry, tired, and bored out of their minds. Many were asleep.

But one was none of these things. And that person had blood-red hair and bright red eyes that didn't quite look like contacts. He wore a black shirt and jeans and a red scarf around his neck although it was far from winter.

Looking out of the window, he murmured in thoughtful monotone, "At least Tokyo hasn't changed much."

At that moment a female voice said over the intercom, "Thank you for choosing to ride with us. Please sit tight until the proper light comes on before retrieving any luggage."

The strange traveler took a deep breath, pulled himself up, and then walked out onto the sunlit tarmac...

_A plane descended into Tokyo National Airport, gliding down smoothly from the sky._


	2. 1: The Woman Who Wasn't Good Enough

_**[A/N:]**__**I am SO sorry for not updating, in, what? Months? I didn't mean for this to become a dead story, I just honestly didn't feel like writing anymore on this story for a while. **_

_**Anyway, I do appreciate the support I got for the paragraph I put up awhile back. It means a lot to me. More than you can really know. **_

_**So without further ado, please enjoy the long awaited first chapter of Roses Are Red [RAR]; "The Woman Who Wasn't Good Enough."**_

_**Thanks!**_

_**Nadia Swift**_

**CHAPTER 1 - **_**the woman who wasn't good enough**_

Meiko walked into the bar wanting to punch something. She wasn't just mad; she was steamed. And with the addition of the comfort alcohol she was about to down, this anger would become a lethal weapon.

_'Not good enough, am I? Not popular enough, is that it? Bastards, I'll show all of you!'_ she thought, while out loud she shouted as though already drunk, "Sake! Wine! Anything! Give it to me! Now~!"

"You got it," said a voice, sounding as though it were accompanied with a smirk. "One sake coming right up."

Why did that voice sound so familiar? It couldn't be that person, could it?

"Kaito…?" she ventured, looking up, fear and disbelief seizing her heart.

But no. Immediately she felt silly. Of course it wasn't Kaito. He would never have come to a place like this.

It was somebody similar, though, as she examined him, but not exactly the same either. This person had tousled bright red hair, blood red eyes, and a devilish grin on his face that was so different from the smile that Kaito's usually held, one of childish innocence. It was strange seeing a face so similar to her boyfriend smile in such a way.

"Not quite," he smiled. "That'd be my brother."

Brother? Since when had he had anything but a little sister? She couldn't help the feeling of betrayal coursing through her veins at the thought that Kaito had been keeping that detail of his life from her.

Seeming to read her thoughts, the handsome man responded by saying kindly, "I haven't been here in Tokyo for at least ten years. And I'm not really that close with my brother. That's probably why he hasn't mentioned me before." And though his tone was gentle, his words had an uncomfortable edge to them.

The two were silent for a long time, the man she now knew to be Kaito's brother patiently polishing shot glasses and placing them back in their spots. Meiko contemplated telling the man that she was his brother's girlfriend, but decided against it.

Meanwhile, Akaito set down Meiko's order on the bar. With a smile he said, "Here you go. Now tell me, what is it that you do for a living?"

Instantly distrustful (why did he _have_ to pick the worst thing in the world to talk about first?) she said, "Why do I have to tell you?"

In a strangely adorable, Kaito-like gesture, he rubbed the back of his neck pensively, head and gaze tilted skyward. When his eyes returned to earth he said, "Well, actually, you don't. But I think I can guess."

Meiko said nothing, for a second, just eyeing him. _What were the odds that he'd get it right?_

"Okay, then. Guess."

He seemed to think. The mere expression on him, earnest yet clever, like he knew more than he was letting on, was so like Kaito that she couldn't help smiling.

"A nurse." He finally guessed.

She shook her head, an amused smile on her face. The mere idea of the job sort of made her insides flop in disgust. "Nope, guess again."

"A dancer. I bet you'd be really good at it," he finally guessed, smiling widely.

At that point she couldn't help it. "Are you kidding me? I can barely even do the most basic steps for performances!"

"Ah, so you're a performer of some sort? A singer, maybe?"

Meiko nodded, beat. "Yeah. That's it. I work with Kaito at the recording studio, so that's how I know him."

"Oh?"

She could tell by the way his gaze turned away that he didn't like to talk about his brother, so, granting his obvious wish for a different topic, she tilted back her head to finish off her drink then said, "I'll let you in on secret."

As it was bound to, this intro seemed to pique his interest. Setting down her glass, she added, "The truth is, I'm not very popular. A _sixteen-year-old_ has me beat in that field." She laughed bitterly. "Isn't that funny? They say I should try to be cute like Miku, but I just can't be, y'know? I am who I am and all that. And honestly, I'm not cute at all."

He was silent for moment.

Then he laughed.

She clenched her jaw and soon her fist. What kind of jerk… "What the hell is wrong with you?! Laughing at a girl's feelings? What kind of person does tha…!"

But she didn't get to finish. She couldn't very well speak when this man's lips were pressed to hers!

"Mmph…!" Meiko shoved him away, but he just smiled and said, "I think you're very cute. No matter what anyone says, you could no doubt become better than anybody. Especially that idiot brother of mine."

Spellbound, she nodded.

He pulled away and said, "By the way, my name is Akaito. I like you a lot, so don't bother paying anything for today, okay? It's all on me." Then he kissed her once more quickly on the cheek before going to the back room, leaving Meiko to stare at his retreating back.


End file.
